Living an Enchanted Lowcountry Life

Ah, life in a small village: Charming architecture, lush landscapes and green spaces, and friendly neighbors who greet you with a smile.

Welcome to Palmetto Bluff!

“Palmetto Bluff is a very unique place,” homeowner Tina Yaraghi said. “I call it my personal Mayberry. My little happy place. When we go there, we go into a different state of mind. We decompress. It’s a getaway in every sense of the word.”

Thanks to Bluffton builder Element Construction, Tina and her husband, Michael, can enjoy part-time Lowcountry living, splitting their time between their home on Long Island and their River Road neighborhood in Palmetto Bluff.

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Crepe myrtles, evergreen boxwood shrubs, and a bevy of colorful hydrangeas flank the tabby and brick driveway that leads to their vacation home. Historically accurate architectural touches include weather-resistant galvalume metal roofing, horizontal wood-simulated Hardie Siding, a large front porch with columns, a screened porch with a gas fireplace at the rear of the house, and twin chimneys on either side of the main structure. 

A custom mahogany front door extends an invitation to enter this 5,489-square-foot, four-bedroom, fivebathroom home. There also are two powder rooms, plus a guest suite above the garage with a living room, bedroom, bathroom and walk-in closet.

“The great room is the center point when you walk in,” said Brandon Edwards, operations partner at Element Construction. “The view out the back looks over the waterway. The windows looking out the back in the main living areas are almost floor to ceiling, and they maximize the width of the room.”

The views of the waterway helped make the house feel like a home.

WE WERE VERY PROUD TO WIN BEST KITCHEN’ AT THE 2018 LIGHTHOUSE AWARDS.

- ANDREA ELDRED, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PARTNER AT ELEMENT CONSTRUCTION

“When you walk in, it wraps its arms around you because it’s so inviting,” said Tina, a blogger who owns The Enchanted Home, an e-commerce business that sells upscale jars, vases, planters and blueand- white porcelain accent pieces. “You feel a sense of calm and tranquility. When you see the water, the relaxation washes over you.”

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The white oak flooring has a customized stain and stretches throughout the first floor and up the stairs to a large loft area. Each of the three upstairs bedrooms welcomes guests with luxurious carpeting under foot.

“The ceiling heights vary throughout the house, going from 12 feet in the main areas on the first floor up to 18 feet on a vault in the main bedroom and study,” said Edwards, a Clemson graduate who has been in the construction industry since 2001. “The ceilings in the bedroom on the second floor and sitting area start at 10 feet and vault up to 13 or 14 feet.”

The ceiling in the great room is coffered, and butt board with beams is used on the ceilings in the master bedroom and office, said Andrea Eldred, Element’s business development partner.

The open floorplan downstairs is wrapped in a white and neutral color scheme.

“It’s a very clean monochromatic design,” she added.

Color accents in the cabinetry, tile and kitchen backsplash enliven the neutrals and are enhanced by blue-and-white accent pieces from The Enchanted Home. Other custom elements in the home include:

  • Honed Carrera marble counters.
  • Marble subway tiles in the kitchen that extend to the ceiling.
  • Custom cabinetry with a high-gloss lacquer finish in butler’s pantry.
  • A wood-burning fireplace with a custom cast stone mantle.
  • Francois cobblestone floor in the owner’s entry, laundry and butler’s pantry.
  • Custom iron railings.
  • His and hers master bathrooms.

The couple’s favorite room in the home is the expansive screen porch in back — especially for Michael, an executive in the family-owned home furnishings company Safavieh, who says the sitting areas and dining set on the porch afford them front-row views of the water and woodlands.

Since construction of the home was completed in early spring 2018, the Yaraghis have tried to spend downtime every month at their vacation home. Life in the Lowcountry’s slow lane works just fine for this couple.

VENDOR LIST

General Contractor
Element Construction

Architect
Court Atkins Group

Design
The Enchanted Home

Plumbing
Cregger

Flooring
Francois Cobblestone & Timberstone Wood Flooring

Custom Mantle
Classic Stone Creations

Hood
Classic Custom Metal Works

Cabinetry
Palmetto Cabinet Studio

Granite
Creative Stone Accessories, Inc.

Landscaping
Hilton Head Landscapes

Windows
Pella

Custom Mahogany Doors
Coastal Sash & Door, Inc.